Material : seven solid copper rods, seven solid steel rods, seven beeswax tarps, pallet, of dulse, food
Location :The New Gallery, Calgary Alberta, 2006
Description : The following describes events that took place each day in the gallery space from March 22nd to April 1st, 9am to 5pm 2006. Upon arrival to the Gallery I ate my bowl of granola (banana and yogurt) and then proceeded to Project: TNG 557 located in the main space. Utilizing repetition and routine as strategies I use my body to roll, fold, prop, unroll, unfold, lift, pull, shift, drag, lean, transform, manipulate etc the elements found in the gallery. The items are: seven solid copper rods, seven solid steel rods, seven beeswax tarps, pallet and a crate full of dulse (edible seaweed from New Brunswick). At noon I would take a lunch break and eat a stew I had made in the gallery the first day I arrived. After lunch I would return to Project: TNG 557 until 5 pm. I repeated this routine until I left on Saturday evening on April 1st. A video documenting the activities remained as accompaniment to the material in the gallery.
Detailed Description : Lucy is an example of a work that is not reliant on a central static object to establish a focal point for the viewer. In part, Lucy defuses the conventional theme of the centralized body typical of traditional sculpture. The repetition of Lucy’s modulation creates a situation that has no central point of reference. The repetition or multiple is correlated with the formation of the material used in the fabrication of the objects. The purpose of continuing this repetition is to recall the process of fabricating the objects. The strategy of Lucy is set in the actions of rolling, unrolling, folding and lifting as implied in the structure and as an actual activity. The activities imposed on the forms extend the objective of supplying warmth within the work.
The weight, mass and measure of Lucy are determined by industry and then modulated according to the possibilities of my physical capacity. The material dictates these operations in relation to the limitations of the body. Lucy’s fabrication directs the activities placed upon the continued morphing of the material, from being carried to unroll to fold to unfold to fold to carry to unroll etc. The weight of the material is condensed or spread thin by energy expelled by the body.
The form is expanded from a central point to include a system or cycle of addition, subtraction, warmth and transfer of energy. This activity focuses the objects into one cohesive whole that is continuously morphing in relation to my body.
